ER Visit

Well, I had my first visit to a Korean emergency room today. I was there for about 8 hours, missed work and found out I have kidney stones. This morning I woke up in excruciating pain and it was on the lower right side so my immediate thought was appendicitis. However, the pain was radiating to the back and it actually hurt worse than my abdomen. Mr. Kim met me at my apartment at 9 and we went the the Seoul Medical Clinic and the doctor (who spoke English very well) told me it could be my appendix so I should go to the emergency room as quickly as possible. By then the pain had subsided some, I could actually walk without being hunched over and I thought, "ok, I'm fine." After an X-Ray I was hooked up to an IV, had an EKG and then I was taken up to CT. Turns out it wasn't my appendix, which was a relief because I really didn't want to have surgery. However, the kidney stones are on the move and that is why I was in such horrible pain. Later, after the CT I got pain medication and I am feeling about 500% better. I'm not out of the woods yet of course and tomorrow at 10 I have another X-Ray, this one involves dye, sort of like the CT, but they want to see how many and how big these stones are. I really hope I don't have to miss school tomorrow (I'll miss at least 10-12) because I only get 2 sick days and then my severance pay is deducted. Even in medical emergencies, thats the downfall of only 4 teachers. Good news though, I didn't have insurance this morning when I checked in so I was going to have to pay close to $1000 for everything today (the CT is $500), but Mr. Kim somehow finagled the people in to accepting my insurance after check in (he must have talked to a million people today) so now my total cost is only around $200. My test tomorrow will be about $35 and medications were only $13. Not too bad.

Kimchi and Bank Mishaps

On Saturday I met up with J.T. and we had dinner and went out for drinks. We met some of his co-workers at the bar. I had a good time, I got to see Seoul at night and also venture to another part of town. I left my apartment at 7 and got to Sinchon around 8. Sinchon (pronounced shin chon) is a lot busier than Kangnam and not quite as clean. However, the food was absolutely delicious and I had kimchi for the first time. It was fantastic, in fact, I could have eaten the whole bowl! For dinner, we had what I believe was budae-jjiggae and it too was absolutely fantastic. I also had my first taste of soju and I liked that as well, but that stuff is strong.

Kimchi

Dinner

Later we just went to a couple of bars and I caught a cab home, it was 2am and the subway stops running at about 11:30. It cost me $19 for the cab ride, but I suppose thats not too bad if I don't make a habit of it. I had a lot of fun and that is all that really matters.

Today I made my way to a bank to get some money from the ATM and well, I didn't get any. I'm not sure what I pressed because it was all in Korea. I was intending to take about $100 out and so I pressed the button that said 70, but then no money came out (I hope, I couldn't find any) and the receipt said 700,000W. So I brushed it off thinking no wonder I didn't get any money, I don't have that much in my account. Well, then I tried again, pressed 5 for 50,000W and nothing happened except a receipt. I checked my bank account when I got home and I'm ok, but I figured it might take a few days to post. So I'm really hoping that I accidentally told it to deposit money and I don't have 750,000W sitting at the ATM for someone to steal and my bank account in the red. I'll just have to wait I guess.

EDIT: So I found this on a Korean tourism website...However, as all ATM transactions require an account with a Korean bank, ATMs are not particularly convenient for international travelers except for getting cash advances on a credit card...Cash dispenser machines, called CDs, which only offer cash withdrawal services, can be found in subways, convenience stores, railway stations, bus terminals, and department stores.

Gyeongbokgung

Today I braved the down pour and made my way to Gyeongbokgung. It is a palace that has been in existence since th Joseon Dynasty in South Korea. It was built in 1395, but in 1592 the Japanese destroyed it. They burnt it down and since it was made of wood, I'm sure it went up quickly. However, it was rebuilt in 1868 and it has 330 buildings. It was quite magnificent. I had a very nice tour guide who gave me more information than perhaps I needed to know, but I learned a lot. My favorite part of the day was learning the hangul alphabet, which of course has escaped me now. However, it was interesting to learn the origin of the written language.

The grounds of the palace also house the National Folk Museum. I really wanted to check that out too, but my feet were soggy and I really wanted to be dry. I have a week off starting July 26th so I will be able to go to these places again, plus more. Here are a few pictures from my day at Gyeongbokgung...

Kimbap

So far this week has been going pretty well. It seems to be going a bit quicker than last week, probably because I'm not jet lagged and I've gotten into a routine. I also have Friday morning off which will be really nice. The kindergarteners are going on a field trip, not quite sure where, but I'm sure they will have fun. So I won't have to be to work until around 2, I think. Anyway, not much in the form of an update at this point. This weekend should be filled with pictures and some stories and adventures worth blogging.

Yesterday I had a fantastic lunch of Chamchi (tuna) Kimbap (kim-bop). It is the Korean version of sushi, but the meat inside is cooked. Many Koreans see this as picnic food and eat it, you guessed it, at picnics. However, its also a very tasty and cheap lunch. Only about 2500W ($2.50), less if you omit the tuna. In addition to the tuna it has seaweed, rice, pickled radish, carrot, something with soy sauce (couldn't identify, but it tastes good), egg, ham and some sort of leaf.

Delicious.

Subway and Walking Around

On Saturday I wanted to do some exploring, but it was pretty hot and humid (not that this is any different from any other day) so I didn't stay out as long as I would have liked. However, I did take the subway for the first time. The pocket sized subway map is in Korean, so it can be difficult to know where one is going, but luckily I have a tour book with the English version printed in it. I only went two stops, but I made my way to the Gangnam stop where I found a plethora of stores and restaurants. I found a really cool store, Artbox, that had all sorts of stationery, pens, planners, journals, etc. I bought a planner because I didn't have one and have already found it useful and I also bought a red and pink pen to coordinate with the stationery I purchased. All of this only set me back 7,800W ($7.80). I also found a really great store with tons of makeup and nail polish but I only looked.

Yesterday, I met up with my friend J.T. and we walked around my neighborhood for a good couple of hours. We probably walked over a mile and a half in total. Later we went to dinner at Momotaro, a Japanese restaurant right by my apartment. I found a Chrysler dealership and Hyundai department store along with Lotte department store. I will most likely explore the department stores at some point. When I got home last night I continued looking at walking tours of the city. I want to become acquainted with the city outside of my little bubble. So, next Saturday I will be taking a walking tour of Gyeongbokgung Palace (and others) on the other side of the river. It means more using the subway (and transferring!) and getting to see some of the historical parts of Seoul. I am planning on signing up for a walking tour once a week (until they are all done) in order to become more familiar with Korean history and culture. I am also planning on visiting the DMZ and a green tea plantation at some point as well.

My second week of teaching starts today. I have a few tests to give this week so I'll be in the process of writing those tonight. The good thing is that I have a folder on the computer at school that previous teachers have used so I can either take their tests, or use them to make my own. I feel confident that I can write my own test, but maybe for the first couple I'll see what they have done.

First Week and Neighborhood Adventures

My first week of teaching is behind me and while I still feel like a fish out of water, I am beginning to get the hang of things. The school is pretty regimented, but that works in my advantage because everything is laid out for me. The kids are still cute and I definitely have my favorites, but I do like all of them for the most part. Some of them are just more of a challenge and I'll just have to work harder with them. I gave my first test today and I have three to give next week. These kids are pretty smart for the most part, but nobody fails. The worst grade a kid can get is a C+. I suppose thats good since this is an enrichment sort of deal, but still does a kid deserve to pass if she/he is really failing?

I'd like to take a moment to comment on the fashion I've seen this week. Let me just say that my emotions range anywhere from envious to perplexed all in one block. I've seen women dressed very nicely for work, with heels and then I've seen extremely short mini skirts with ridiculously high heels. The women who make me shake my head the most are the ones who can pull it off and most of them can. English on shirts is VERY popular here, but sometimes I wonder if they know what it is actually saying. My favorite female fashion? Socks with heels. The men in Korea are very sharp dressers (at least Monday-Friday in Gangnam). The most popular item is a pair of metallic pants, but pewter seems to be the only color. Men aren't afraid to carry purses (they aren't bags, I assure you that they are indeed purses). The men dress up for their day jobs and then loosen their ties while they sit outdoors and proceed to drink their faces off. I've read that this is a Korean tradition.

I have a few pictures to post! They are mainly of the side streets near my apartment and if it looks like people are walking in the street, don't fret. Sidewalks only exist on 8 lane streets. Scooters drive where they please and people park on what sidewalks do exits, double parking and middle of the road parking is not uncommon in fact, it is the norm. These pictures are from my walk around the neighborhood this afternoon in search of pens, a notebook and batteries. They were all successfully purchased. Also, on the side bar is a link to my Flickr page for more pictures.


Street about a block from my apartment

Mr. Pizza on a very busy Gangnam street

Birthday Parties, Grocery Stores and English TV

Today we celebrated the birthdays of two of our kindergarteners. It was quite possibly the cutest thing I have ever seen. The two little girls (Analise and Jessica) were showered by gifts from the other kids and we had cake (the kids had chocolate we got yellow with green tea frosting) bananas, orange juice and cream soda (I just had cake and orange juice). The kids also got bags with candy and other goodies in them, thank goodness it was after I had them for class. This morning my first kinder class was out of control. I was teaching them social studies, in the form of a time line thing, but they can't focus longer than 2 seconds. They are the same age as all the other kinders, but their English isn't as good so it seems like they are younger. It's hard for me to control them and want to teach them, I don't have the patience. I love the other kinder classes though. They understand more English than some of my grade 1 and 2s. I had to get blood work done today so that I could get my Alien Registration Card. I'm pretty sure I'm clean, no diseases or drugs for me.

The last two days I've gone down to the grocery mart in my school building to grab lunch, but I think I am going to start walking home for lunch. I get an hour and it only takes about 10 minutes to get to school. I went to the grocery store (Everyday Mart) yesterday to buy some food, but didn't buy too much because I don't have a microwave (still debating if I should buy one) and most of the food, for ready to eat needs to be microwaved. Although, ramen just needs hot water so this weekend I'll buy some ramen. Yesterday I bought skim milk, apple juice (which is chocked full of sugar, I need to find an alternative), pasta and kiwi fruit. I enjoy the grocery because its fun to look at things, things I am used to seeing in English are in Korean, but I can recognize it (name brands). They have a lot of things over here like Powerade and Gatorade, Lay's, all candy, (Korean novelty candy is way cooler), Sun Chips and a ton more. However, I really want to go to Homever to grocery shop, but I assume it'll be more expensive.

I saw a lady wearing a Wisconsin shirt today, but on the back it said something about Hawaii. I'm not sure what that implied/meant, but I smiled when I saw Wisconsin. I brought my camera along today, but totally forgot about it until I got home. I will take a gazillion pictures this weekend and work on getting them on Flickr/linking them to the blog. Well, I am going to finish Law and Order (on one of the 5 English channels) and go to bed.